


Lights

by uh_idk_whatever



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Nightmares, Not Captain America: Civil War (Movie) Compliant, tbh the rest of the characters are lite(tm), violence mention
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-18
Updated: 2016-07-27
Packaged: 2018-07-25 07:24:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7523752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/uh_idk_whatever/pseuds/uh_idk_whatever
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As Natasha Romanoff struggles to cope with a recurring nightmare assaulting her every night, a source of comfort comes to her in the form of one she never expected. She found solace in him, and he in turn told her his nightmares, his fears, his secrets. A friendship- or maybe something more- blooms from their common pain. And, as she discovers more of his past, more of him, her dreams change to ones of a different nature. Natasha's never been in love before. She's not even sure if she is now. But there's one thing she does know, and that's that she's never seen lights like the ones in his eyes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Blurry images darted hastily across her vision. Blood spattered across her view, black splotches impaired her sight, figures leaped at her. She felt the ripping pain of one, then two bullets tearing through her flesh. She bent over in pain, clutching at her injured hip and shoulder. Hearing a scream from behind her, she spun to see her partner's long blond hair being used to drag her away, screaming and kicking uselessly. Natasha reached out her hand helplessly and opened her mouth to give her partner reassurance. An ear-shattering explosion knocked her over before she could, and as she tried to get up to run forward, a shudder ran through her body. She could feel her lung collapsing from the bullet and knew she was gone. Her petite frame shook in desperation as her heart slowed. Just before it stopped altogether, a strong hand flipped her over onto her back. She furrowed her brow in confusion when she heard a familiar voice. "Romanoff! Romanoff! Wake up!"

Natasha jerked upright into a sitting position, eyes still squeezed shut in imagined pain. A hand grasped her shoulder, and she reacted, grabbing the hand and twisting it behind its owner's back.

"Ow! Nat! Calm down, okay? It's me!" the owner of the hand sputtered. It took her a second, but Natasha finally recognized the broad shoulders, sharp jawline, and short dirty blond hair of her victim. 

"Oh crap. Crap- I'm sorry!" she expressed.

"It's okay, Romanoff, just relax," Steve said as he turned around slowly. She nodded breezily, her cool facade stuttering back into place. 

"Yeah, yeah. Look, sorry if I woke you, but I'm fine now. So you can leave," she brushed him away, trying to compensate for the minute shivers still apparent in her hands.

"Did I say you weren't fine? I don't care how you are now, you weren't fine two seconds ago when you were screaming and crying in your sleep," he calmly spoke, his authoritative side coming out. "Romanoff, you're a member of my team, and as such, I have to look after your health. That includes mental health. And that-" he pointed to her pillow behind her. "That did not look healthy."

"Listen, Rogers. I said I was fine. So back the fuck off." she retorted angrily, hands clenching into fists at her sides.

"You know what, Agent? No. You're not getting rid of me. I'm going to sit here, with you, until you fall back asleep. You can talk to me if you want, or feel free to mope. Either way, I'm not leaving," he stated, eyebrows furrowed in worry and determination. 

"Are you kidding me? I'm not some kind of child who can't take care of herself, Steve. Like I said, I'll be fine," she insisted.

"I never said you were. I would do this for anyone else on our team, too."

"Fine. But don't think that this is me giving in! I just...don't care...or something," she sputtered. She really did want him to stay, but she didn't want him to think she was weak. It's just that his presence was already so calming to her.

"I know, I know," he comforted with a grin. "Just go to sleep. I'll be here."

As much as she didn't want to, the sound of sleep sounded amazing. So, reluctantly, she finally relaxed and laid down on her side, facing away from Steve's patient eyes. He scooted up so his back was against the headboard of her bed, pulling his knees up to his chest and resting his arms on them, settling in for a long night.

She glanced back over at him before closing her eyes. He was gazing off into the distance, clearly deep in thought. His eyes twinkled, and as she let herself fall into sleep, those lights guided her out of nightmares.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this is so short! hope you enjoyed it!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is un-beta'ed so any mistakes are my own! thanks for reading and please leave a comment with advice, ideas, or encouragement!!

Steve woke early. At first, he didn't know where he was. His back ached from sleeping in a strange position, but he wasn't too worried about that, as it would sort itself out pretty soon due to his quick healing. He was more concerned about what he had just remembered from last night.

He had been unable to sleep...again. He got up to go to the gym to work out and try to get rid of some of his pent-up emotions. On his way, however, he had heard moans and gasps coming from one of the rooms. Following the noises, he realized it was Romanof- no, Natasha, she keeps telling him to call her Natasha- it was Natasha's room that the increasingly explicit noises were coming from.

He crept closer to the sounds, curious as to their reason. He slipped into the kitchen, barely glancing at the excessive blinking lights from all the different appliances Tony had. As much as Steve was grateful for Tony's generosity, giving each of the Avengers their own room-sorry, floor- sometimes he tired of Tony's just plain richness. In fact, none of them would probably ever see each other if it weren't for the communal kitchen and living room they all shared, which were on Natasha's floor. She volunteered, saying she didn't like all the space anyway. 

Which is why he was here, planning to stop in the kitchen to grab a water, and why he heard the sounds in the first place. Speaking of, his inquiring feelings as to what they were was only growing. Wanting to find out, he walked still closer to her room, his original goal all but forgotten. As Steve finally reached the door to her bedroom, he hesitated to open it, his mind first deciding to lecture him on what the noises might be.

Listen to them! Do they sound like noises one would make if they wanted to be interrupted?

Maybe she sleeptalks?

Yeah, right. Look, just cause you haven't gotten any doesn't mean nobody else is.

Maybe it's a nightmare?

This is denial. Think about it. She and Barton are so close, remember?

He's married!

So? Have you seen Natasha lately?

I'll just knock, and if she doesn't answer, she's asleep and I'll check on her just in case. If she does....I'll pretend this never happened.

Having made his decision, he reached up and lightly rapped on the door. There was no answer. He glanced at the doorknob in hesitation, slowly extending his hand and resting it on the knob. After a couple more seconds, he decided he should just get it over with and opened the door a crack. peering into the dark room, he struggled to make out anything, before his enhanced eyes quickly adjusted.

He finally recognized the shape of Natasha's petite form in her bed, thankfully alone. Steve was about to close the door again and leave, when those sounds started again. Looking back in, he noticed that Nat didn't exactly seem to be sleeping well. He opened the door wider and stepped in. As he walked quietly toward her, he saw more clearly her tense body twitching and struggling against dreamed foes. He froze for a moment. Although he was certainly no stranger to nightmares himself, he didn't know how she would react if he woke her up, and honestly, he was a bit terrified of making her hate him.

This was decided for him a moment later, though, when she jerked to her side and started shaking uncontrollably.

Okay, that's it, he thought. His hand clamped down on her shoulder and gently shook her once, before realizing that wouldn't cut it. He pulled her on to her back and whispered loudly, "Romanoff! Romanoff! Wake up!"

She shot up, grabbed his hand, and twisted it behind his back. She was clearly upset, but after talking to her for a moment, he could feel her walls coming back up. She was shutting him out. Resignedly, he took advantage of his stubbornness and insisted on staying with her.

After she realized she wasn't getting rid of him, she rolled over to sleep, and he got comfortable. Zoning out, he could still feel her gaze on him.

And now, he was awake. Finally remembering all the details of last night, though he didn't remember falling asleep. Looking to his right where Natasha had been, he sighed inwardly with relief at the sight of her still-sleeping body. 

Rolling his neck, he slowly stretched his arms out, stifling his yawn so as not to wake her. Slipping quietly out of the bed, he tiptoed out of the room and into her personal bathroom. Steve rubbed his eyes tiredly and looked over at the clock on her wall. He read it quickly, shocked at the time. It was 11:32 AM. He hadn't slept this late in- hell, in almost 75 years. 

 

Despite having just woken up, his heightened senses were already energizing him. He walked back into Natasha's bedroom, startling when he saw her absence from the bed. Had he done something wrong?

"Nat? Natasha?" he called softly, stepping into the next room. Hearing no answer, he figured she must have gone into the communal kitchen, where he was sure at least Banner- Bruce- and Clint would be up. Thor was on Asgard as he usually is, except when he occasionally finds time to come down and visit, and Tony...well, just don't expect him to be up before noon most days.

Sighing, he realized just how well she had played it. With her in the kitchen, around other people, there was no way he could pull her aside to talk about what had happened the night before without making a scene. Steve shuffled into the kitchen resignedly, adjusting his white tank top as he went.

When he reached the entrance to the kitchen, he heard voices and quiet laughter seeping out through the doorway. Rounding the corner, he strode in. Clint glanced up at the noise of his footsteps and Steve saw he was correct in his guess- Bruce, Clint, and Natasha were all seated around the marble island, chatting nonchalantly. Clint slipped off his chair and greeted him with a "Hey, Cap. Pity you were so late, would've loved to talk with you, but I've gotta head out. Peace out, boy(and girl) scouts!"

"His new favorite saying," Bruce clarified, chuckling dryly. Hearing footsteps on the stairs, they all glanced over to see Tony entering the room.

Even though she had ignored him as yet, Natasha looked over at Steve and smirked, knowing he wouldn't have a chance to talk with her for a while. 

Will she ever open up to me? he thought exasperatedly.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm expecting this to be about ten chapters but we'll see where it goes! I'm thinking of uploading a new chapter every weekend, so that's the tentative schedule. If you have any ideas for this work or prompts for others, you can comment or message me at my tumblr here http://uh-idk-whatever.tumblr.com/. Comments, kudos, and bookmarks give me life and motivation to keep writing!!!


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